American exceptionalism at the End of Time

Nationalism to the End

Guy McPherson

NatureBats Last,

15 March, 2018

Never has failure been so ardently defended as success

~ John Ralston Saul

I recently read on social media, “the world needs a strong USA.” The comment was in response to the ongoing, accelerating collapse of American Empire, albeit cloaked in a story about economic “trade wars.” I suspect the comment reflects a growing nationalistic sentiment as economic contraction sweeps more and more unthinking “patriots” under the rug of sympathy. As such, I believe it’s worthy of my critical eye.

First, though, full disclosure is warranted. I completed the comment, “the world needs a strong USA,” with a line of my own: “… to accelerate extinction of all life on Earth.”

Apparently that’s the desired outcome, if we get toys in exchange. The Faustian bargain is nearly complete. Our ready willingness to trade life for toys brought us to the bring of extinction. Soon, it’ll take us over the brink. As we hurtle individually into the abyss, I doubt toys will enter our minds. Or the money that purchased the toys. Or the jobs that brought the money to afford the toys. More likely, it seems to me, will be thoughts of what was sacrificed for the job that earned the money to purchase the toys: experiences with friends, for example, or experiences within nature.

I’d be hard pressed to come up with a finer example of intentional omnicide than the United (sic) States. Nowhere is greed hailed more than in ‘murica. Nowhere is financial wealth treated as synonymous with success more than in the country of my birth.

I’ve heard about American exceptionalism from my earliest days. From parents to presidents, from ads to teachers, the messages of indoctrination represent a steady, tortuous drip into the receptive psyche. Americans are certainly exceptional. And not in a meritorious manner.

I’m not suggesting people from other countries are necessarily more noble than those from the USA. Try as they will, they’ve simply not yet caught up with the most dispicable people on Earth. Given the short remaining run for humanity, I doubt they “succeed.”

As usual, I’ve covered this terrain before, in this case six years ago. I’m well beyond the misguided notion anything will change for the better, at least at the level of society. As pointed out by Navajo proverb, I cannot awaken a person pretending to be asleep. At this late date in the run of humanity, I’m interested only in pointing out evidence to the very few willing to accept it and live accordingly.

If you’re one of the few people willing to live with death in mind, then perhaps you’re already living beyond mainstream society. Maybe you’ve thrown off a few cultural shackles in pursuit of personal authenticity. If you’ve found your purpose, driven by your passion, then a “word to the wise” is unnecessary. On the other hand, if you’re among the masses uninterested in seeking your purpose because your life lacks passion, then this short commentary is not for you.

Either way, in other words, I’ve run out of an audience. Having painted myself into a corner, I leave the serious introspection to you.